Abstract received after deadline; 6/18/03
A current focus of our laboratory is the use of insects as sentinels for sampling and monitoring for the presence of environmental hazards of human concern. To support this work, we tested the hypothesis that recovery of insect-carried agents will vary with respect to functional feeding group and mode of uptake. Representative insects were fed or exposed to B. atrophaeus (=B. subtilis var. niger), a standard non-pathogenic surrogate for B. anthracis. Experimental and control insects were assayed over time using microbiological culturing on TSA and by PCR using B. atrophaeus-specific primers developed in our laboratory. Results are applicable to the design of sampling programs for homeland defense, bio- and agroterrorism, and for monitoring a variety of biological, chemical and radiological agents of human importance in the environment.
Back to Student Competition Ten-Minute Papers, Cd2, Behavior and Ecology
Back to Student Competition TMP Orals
Back to The 2003 ESA Annual Meeting and Exhibition